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Tancredo, 68, is the former congressman who sought the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, then unsuccessfully ran for governor as a third-party candidate in 2010.

In a general election, Tancredo’s very conservative positions on a host of issues — but especially against illegal immigration — could galvanize Democratic base voters who are otherwise unlikely to show up without Obama on the ballot.

A Democratic-linked group, Protect Colorado Values, has spent half a million dollars trying to boost Tancredo in the primary and damage his main rival, former Rep. Bob Beauprez. Also running in the primary are former state Senate Minority Leader Mike Kopp and Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler.

An outside group called Republicans Who Want to Win has run an ad saying Democrats prefer to run against Tancredo. Another group, called Make Colorado Great Again, has spent $150,000 on an ad that accuses Tancredo of wanting to decriminalize drugs.

The sense is that the race is way too close to call, but there’s been scant public polling. In part because Hickenlooper is seen as less beatable than a year ago, one concern is that Tancredo will benefit from low turnout.

5. Do GOP establishment favorites win in three key New York House races?

Republican Rep. Richard Hanna faces a spirited primary challenge upstate from Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney, who is attacking the congressman over his support for gay marriage.

The 22nd District incumbent has gotten backup from major GOP donors, such as Paul Singer, but Tenney is getting help from social conservative groups. All-but-announced 2016 presidential candidate Rick Santorum, for example, recorded a last-minute robocall supporting Tenney for Citizens United.

Two of the best opportunities for House Republicans come in Empire State districts, where there are contentious primaries between retreads and fresh faces favored by D.C. strategists.

In the 21st District, a reddish upstate area, Democratic Rep. Bill Owens is retiring. Self-funder Matt Doheny, who narrowly lost to him in 2010 and 2012, is trying a third time. But Elise Stefanik, a young GOP operative who grew up in the district, has received public support from the likes of Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan and American Crossroads, which has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars attacking Doheny.

In the 1st District, on Long Island, Democratic Rep. Tim Bishop won by fewer than 2,000 votes in 2012.

In the GOP primary to face him, state Sen. Lee Zeldin has support from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other establishment groups. But George Demos, a self-funder, has the backing of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Gov. George Pataki. National Republicans prefer Zeldin over Demos, who lost in the 2010 GOP primary.

6. What is Anthony Brown’s margin in the Democratic primary for Maryland governor?

Outgoing Gov. Martin O’Malley’s lieutenant governor leads by 20-plus points in the final polls from The Baltimore Sun and The Washington Post.

Brown, an African-American veteran, is well positioned to trounce Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler and Heather Mizeur, an openly gay state delegate running as an unabashed liberal. But the race could tighten if turnout is low.

As O’Malley gears up for a potential presidential run — the Democrat was in Iowa over the weekend — the primary is a referendum of sorts on how his base sees him in his home state.

O’Malley campaigned with Brown on the eve of the primary, but their administration has taken heat over the disastrous rollout of an Obamacare exchange and their push to raise taxes during the past eight years. Whoever wins the deep-blue state’s primary will be heavily favored to prevail over whichever of the four Republicans emerges from the GOP primary.